Professional cabinet



May 20 1941- G. E. FRoELlcH 2,242,720

4 PROFESS IONAL CABINET y Filed April 24. 1959 2 sheets-sheet 1 l l May 20, 1941. Y Q E, FROELICH 2,242,720

PROFESSIONAL CABINET Filed April 24, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 O Il.

Patented May 20, i941l PROFESSIONAL 'CABINET George E. Froelich, Two Rivers, Wis., assignor to Hamilton Manufacturing Company, Two Rivers, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application April 24, 1939, Serial No. 269,645

3 Claims. i (Cl. S12-192) This invention relates to professional cabinets more particularly for dental use, and among other objects aims to provide an improved combined storage means for bottles or the like and a working top so disposed and arranged so as to permit of ready access to the storage compartment without movement of the bottles.

It is desirable to have the bottles normally enclosed to guard against dust and breakage, and one object of my invention is to provide a simple and improved enclosure which is substantially dustproof, and which avoids unnecessary projections or obstructions.

When opened, it is desirable that theV bottle compartment constitute substantially a horizontal continuation of the working surface so that the hands of the operator may move from the working surface to the bottle compartment and vice versa, substantially in a horizontal plane and without making it necessary for the operator rigid inverted boX-like form, and reciprocates by translator-y motion in a vertical plane to cover and uncover the bottles, thus leaving no obstruc- 3 tion in front of the bottles when the cover is elevated.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows a top perspective view of a cabinet embodying my invention with the cover in closed position;

Figure la is a similar view showing the cover in elevated position;

Figure 2 is a sectional front View of the cabinet on an enlarged scale;

Figure 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 still further enlarged;

Figure 4 is a' cross-section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3; and

Figure 5 is a cross-section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Referring in detail to the illustrative construction shown in the drawings, the cabinet I0, the top portion only of which need be here shown, has a horizontal top working surface II which is advantageously of suitable sanitary stainproof material and having a slightly raised rim I2. This working surface is advantageously disposed,

by reason of the height of the cabinet, conveniently for use when the operator is in standing position.

The back wall I3 of the cabinet, as here shown, has a short portion I4 thereof upstanding above and at the rear of the working surface II, and immediately forward of this rear wall portion is a tray portion I5 for medicine bottles I6 or the like. The tray portion I5 may have a separable insert II therein which may be readily removed for cleaning purposes. The tray portion and insert are desirably countersunk with respect to the working surface so as to be substantially iiush therewith.

In accordance with the present invention, the vertically reciprocable cover IB comprises ends I9, top 2t, front 2| and rear 22 being thus of box form and inverted for purposes next described. For appearance the top 2|) and front 2| merge together by a radius 23 and the ends I9 are similarly formed as at 24 to correspond therewith. A handle 25 located centrally of the cover top 2D is used in this instance for manual operation of the cover.

It will thus be understood that the working surface II, bottle tray portion I5 and cover I8 are carried by the upper wall 26 of the cabinet I0, the cover when in closed position resting as b-y rubber buttons 2l on the edges of the tray portion I5 and enclosing the latter to form a bottle compartment.

Further in accordance With my inven-tion, the cover I3 and back wall I3 of the cabinet jointly carry telescoping track members, the cover having fixed centrally to the back thereof a metallic track channel 28 as by bolts 29, this channel having inturned flanges 3|] which lap the offset margins 3| of the metallic track plate 32 secured as by screws 33 in the slot 34 in the upper portion I4 0f the back wall I3.

The track member 28 carried by the cover is of materially greater length than the track member 32 carried by the rear wall and the former extends, in all positions of the cover, downwardly through an aperture 35 in the cabinet upper wall 26. A guide-plate 36 may margin this aperture 35 to prevent wear therein by movement of the track member.

The track member 28 thus serves somewhat as a plunger and at its lower end is pivotally connected as by a link 31 (articulated as at 31a and 31h) with one end 38 of a lever 39 pivoted between its ends as at 40 on the inner face of the back wall I3. The opposite end o-f the lever 39 carries a counterweight 4I which when the cover I8 is closed, with the track member or plunger 28 depressed, occupies a suspended position on the rear wall of the cabinet as shown in broken lines in Fig. 2. Thus, the cover is counterbalanced, in this instance by the counterweight 4i, so as to be movable vertically upward by a slight manual actuation on the handle 25 to lift the cover with a minimum of effort.

In elevated position of the cover to expose the bottles I6, the counterweight di is shown lowered until it strikes the padded abutment 42 fixed as at 43 to the rear cabinet wall I3, and the track member or plunger 23 may have its lower end turned outwardly as at 44 and carrying a pad 45 which in this posi-tion of the cover` resiliently abuts the guide plate 36 on the cabinet upper wall 25.

It will be understood that by reason of the counterbalanced arrangement, the cover will remain in any position placed until again manually moved. It will be observed that even in the elevated position of the cover, the bottles are still protected at the rear bythe upstanding wall portion l4- of the cabinet sol that the bottles cannot be knocked over backwardly by an accidental movement of the operator It will also be noted that the cover is carried in its movement solely by the joint telescoping members 26 and 32 Without other guiding or supporting means above the working surface, thus affording a maximum of accessibility to the bottle compartment.

The front of the cabinet may` contain the usual drawers 41 for instruments, other medicines, or the like.

Having described my invention, IY claim:

1. In a cabinet of the class described having a working surface and a back extending above and below said working surface, the combination cf a bottle tray portion in the plane of said working surface adjacent the back, an inverted boxlike cover for the tray portion having a rear wall paralleling the said back and closely adjacent thereto, a vertical slot in the back, a plunger centrally carried by said cover rear wall vertically reciprocal in said slot and having a downward extension below the said working surface, a lever pivoted on the back having one end articulated with said extension, a counterweight carried by the other end of sai-d lever, and a pad fixed on the back in the path of the counterweight to abut the latter in elevated position of the cover.

2. In a cabinet of the class described having a working surface and a back extending above and below said working surface, the combination of a bottle tray portion substantially in the plane of said working surface adjacent the back, an inverted box-like cover for the tray portion having a rear wall paralleling the said back and closely adjacent thereto, interengaging vertically telescoping track members carried by said cabinet back and cover rear wall, the track member onthe cover having a downward extension below the said working surface, a lever pivoted on the back having one end articulated with said extension, and counterbalancing means secured to the other end of said lever whereby the cover may be readily elevated to disclose said bottle tray portionv while permitting unobstructed access thereto from said working surface.

3. In a cabinet of the class described having a working surface, the combination of a bottle tray portion at the rear of said working surface, an inverted box-like cover for the tray portion having a rear wall, a plunger fixed to the rear wall of the cover andv extending below said working surface, guide means for the plunger, and a counterbalancing-device for said cover and plunger within the cabinet below said Working surface whereby the cover may be readily elevated above said bottle tray portion supported solely by said plunger.

GEORGE E. FROELICH. 

